In the early years of this blog, when discussing China’s court system, I would make it a point to emphasize that I was limiting my comments to how the courts handle business law matters. I did this for two reasons. One, my sense is that the quality of court handling of business cases is very… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: December 2010
China Rules Skype Illegal. Tell Me Something New.
Posted in China Business, Legal NewsI arrived in Shanghai the other day and my first meeting was with co-blogger, Steve Dickinson, who pronounced that Skype had been declared illegal. We both commented on how it is illegal, and then we started talking about inflation. Skype is illegal in China, of that there can be little doubt. The real question arising… Continue Reading
China Business Dinner Etiquette.
Posted in China Business, Events, Recommended ReadingNothing really new here, but the International Herald Tribune’s Business Navigator section just came out with a concise explanation of the etiquette involved in Chinese business dinners. The article is entitled, “In China, Social Evenings Are Considered Part of the Business Routine,” and, among other things, it notes the following: Business dinners are “a very… Continue Reading
The Truth About US-China Trade.
Posted in Recommended ReadingJust came across an excellent article in the Wall Street Journal that starkly highlights how global trade statistics may not always mean what they first appear to mean. The article was written by Andrew Batson and it uses the iPhone as an example of how even something viewed as of the United States can add… Continue Reading
The ABA Blawg 100. Vote China Law Blog!
Posted in EventsWe are still fighting to win the American Bar Association Best Blog award in our category for the fourth straight year. We started our campaign very late this year, but if we can get anywhere close to the same number of votes we got last year, we will win it. We really need your support…. Continue Reading
Who’s Stealing Your China Trade Secrets?
Posted in China BusinessSmiling faces, sometimes, hey, they don’t tell the truth. Smiling faces, smiling faces, tell lies and I got proof. Hey, your enemy won’t do you no harm, cause you’ll know where he’s coming from. Don’t let the handshake and the smile fool ya, take my advice I’m only try’ to school ya. From the song, “Smiling Faces Sometimes,”… Continue Reading
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Wants You For What Your China Joint Venture Did.
Posted in Legal NewsWe are always writing about how the United States Department of Justice is expanding its prosecution of Foreign Corrupt Practices cases and how that directly impacts your China business. Those previous posts include the following: China Bribes And Transparency: Why The FCPA Matters China And The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Sometimes You Just Have… Continue Reading
Jim Rice On How To Do Business On China.
Posted in Recommended ReadingA cllient sent me a link to an MP3 interview a while back, saying he had listened to it and it contained really good information on doing business in China. The MP3 can be found here and it is an interview with James Rice, a businessperson who has been living in China since 1990. Jim… Continue Reading
China Energy Shortages And Their Impact On Your Business
Posted in China BusinessBy Steve Dickinson As the bone chilling cold of winter solstice approaches, we have been greeted here in China with a series of reports on shortages in primary energy for the winter season: • Coastal China provinces have shifted strongly towards natural gas for home heating. For this winter, a shortfall of up to 10… Continue Reading
Litigating In China. Don’t Lock Yourself Out.
Posted in Legal NewsBy Steve Dickinson The Chinese press has been very excited to report this week on an increase in foreign litigants making use of the Chinese courts. Under the somewhat misleading title of “Commercial disputes with foreign nation [sic] flood Chinese courts,” the reports state that the PRC Supreme People’s Court reports the following statistics: •… Continue Reading
China’s Tax System. When “Equal” Is A Very Bad Thing.
Posted in China Business, Legal NewsIn the good old days, China gave foreign companies all sorts of tax breaks. In fact, China’s taxation system so favored foreign companies, many Chinese companies would form a company overseas and then enter China that way. This tactic came to be known as round-tripping and it became quite common. Those days are truly over…. Continue Reading
Sexism In China. A Good Thing For Foreign Business?
Posted in China BusinessHad an interesting lunchtime discussion the other day with two very dynamic international entrepreneurs on global prejudices. Both told me of how they “take advantage” of it. These two take advantage of it by hiring women, the disabled, and ethnic minorities in countries where other businesses are either reluctant or refuse to hire these people…. Continue Reading
China Business. It Helps To Know The Culture: Responses to Comments
Posted in China BusinessA week or so ago, Jason Patent wrote a three part series on incorporating knowledge of Chinese culture to better your business in and with China. I asked Jason to write these posts after having listening to Jason give the best talk I have ever seen/heard on the cultural differences between China and the United States… Continue Reading
How To Protect Your Molds And Tooling In China.
Posted in Legal NewsTwice this week I got calls from companies who were seeking my law firm’s assistance in getting their molds back from their former Chinese manufacturers and in both cases I had to tell them I did not think it worth their while to pursue their claims. My firm has been called about a dozen time… Continue Reading
China Law Blog On Linkedin. It’s A Good Thing.
Posted in China Business, Recommended ReadingWe started a China Law Blog Group on Linkedin with the plan of making it a spam-free source for China networking, information and discussion. That group has been active for nearly a year now and I am proud to say we have succeeded. Let’s look at the numbers. We have 2195 members, which is… Continue Reading
China Business. It Helps To Know The Culture. Part III. Stereotypes As Excess Baggage.
Posted in China BusinessThis is the third and final part of a three part series of posts by Jason Patent, a China market access consultant with years of on the ground experience and all sorts of degrees from top schools (including a Ph.D from Berkeley) that qualify him to discuss how Chinese culture is likely to impact your… Continue Reading
China Business. It Helps To Know The Culture. Part II. Dealing With The Ethical Gray Zone.
Posted in China BusinessThis is part II of a three part series of posts by Jason Patent, a China market access consultant with years of on the ground experience and all sorts of degrees from top schools (including a Ph.D from Berkeley) that qualify him to discuss how Chinese culture is likely to impact your doing business with… Continue Reading
China Business. It Helps To Know The Culture.
Posted in China Business, Good PeopleA few months ago I spoke at a seminar out East at which Jason Patent also spoke. Jason gave the single best talk I have ever seen/heard on the cultural differences between China and the United States as those differences relate to business. Based on that, I asked him to write some guest posts on China’s… Continue Reading
China Too Expensive? Who You Gonna Call? I Say Vietnam.
Posted in China BusinessAs China wages and costs continue to rise, many of my firm’s clients in low-skill industries are beginning to talk about moving out, either entirely or partially. The big discussion is to where. When asked for my opinion (as I was by an Israeli textile company today), I virtually always suggest Viet Nam. I let… Continue Reading
International (And China) Litigation. The Questions To Ask.
Posted in Legal NewsLike every lawyer in the Western World, I love reading Above the Law for its salacious gossip. My favorite item was many years ago when they posted on the (completely untrue) rumor that my law firm was in merger talks with Baker & McKenzie. It is not the site on which one expects to see… Continue Reading
China Business. China Jails. China Hostages.
Posted in Legal NewsNearly every time I write on this topic, I get at least one email from someone accusing me of fear mongering. I used to dispute that accusation, now I heartily embrace it. I embrace it because the overwhelming majority of foreign companies doing business in China make no allowance even for the possibility of one… Continue Reading
China Law Evolving — Businesses Take Note, Part VII
Posted in Legal NewsLast month, a young teacher in Anhui Province lost an AIDS discrimination case stemming from being rejected for a teaching position after testing HIV-positive. Though this case drew wide condemnation from human rights groups, as lawyer, I have been taking more of a wait-and-see attitude. Stan Abrams of China Hearsay, in a post entitled, “About… Continue Reading
"...the widely respected China Law Blog"
